FEATURED ARTICLES ABOUT CITY POLICE - PAGE 4

City police released surveillance camera stills that they believe show two suspects involved in the Dec. 14 robbery-shooting of a Northeast Baltimore barber shop employee. The victim, who was listed in critical condition, is expected to survive, but lost his eye in surgery and also suffered an injury to one of his hands. The shooting occurred in the 2200 block of Harford Road, at the Up Close barber shop. "We're looking for anyone that might have been in the area," Guglielmi said.

Baltimore City police are investigating a fatal shooting in the 200 block of N. Smallwood St. overnight. Police said officers arrived at Bon Secours Hospital at 12:48 a.m. Sunday after they received a report of a shooting. They found Dayon Barnes, 27, receiving treatment for multiple gunshot wounds, police said. Due to the severity of his injuries, Barnes was transferred to the University of Maryland Shock Trauma Center, where he died at 1:48 a.m., police said. Detectives believe that Barnes was sitting in a car in the 200 block of N. Smallwood St., in the Penrose/Fayette Street Outreach area, when he was shot.

Police have identified a 17-year-old boy who died Sunday night in a double shooting in the 3200 block of Elmley Ave. in Baltimore. The victim, Steven Oglesby, was shot in the back about 8:20 p.m. while sitting in a car with another 17-year-old near his home, said Detective Kevin Brown, a city police spokesman. The vehicle's other occupant was struck in the arm and was being treated at an area hospital, according to police. Brown said investigators had no information on a motive or suspects in the shooting.

Regarding your report that Baltimore needs an outside consultant to advise its police department, my question is: Really? ("Baltimore police seek an outside consultant," Jan. 18). Does Baltimore really need to pay yet another consultant to advise the department about how to execute its mission? Isn't that city Police Commissioner Anthony Batts' job? When interviewed for the commissioner's post, didn't the interviewers ask him what strategies he had in mind to reduce crime in Baltimore?

With a resurgence of violence in Ferguson, Mo., I am reminded of a revelation that I had over 30 years ago upon becoming an inner city police officer. I learned to accept, but not fully understand, that the perceived value to human life on the street in many of the downtrodden areas of America is substantially lower than it is to the police and many others living under better socio-economic circumstances. When the two cultures of diverse values clash it often results in those with higher self-esteem being forced to take actions they would not choose to take except out of a desire for self-preservation.

Baltimore police were investigating two deaths preliminarily considered "questionable," in South and Northwest Baltimore, officials said. The first occurred at about 1 a.m., when officers on patrol outside the Paradox nightclub south of M&T Bank Stadium saw a 25-year-old woman lying on the sidewalk unresponsive as security personnel from the club performed CPR. She was taken to Maryland Shock Trauma Center where she was pronounced dead at about...

Police are investigating the discovery of a body found in the woods in Middle Branch Park in South Baltimore. A man's body was found in a wooded area off a trail at about 11:30 a.m., police said. The man appeared to have suffered trauma, and the body will be transported to the medical examiner for further investigation. At the scene, overlooking the Middle Branch of the Patapsco River, officers could be seen talking with a group of young people, with an officer walking one person out of the woods.

I read the article "City police shuffle ranks, seek national accreditation" (Dec. 31) with a vested interest as a retired Baltimore City police officer. The awarding of "accreditation" for police agencies is not a new concept and existed well before my own retirement, some 16 years ago. The process of being certified as an accredited agency is exhaustive and covers literally every function within the department. To prepare the agency for this certification is a labor- and time-intensive undertaking, involving participation at all levels.

City police have identified two men fatally shot over the weekend. Police said 23-year-old Lawrence Edwards was the victim found shot Friday night in the 2200 block of Elsinore Ave. Officers had been called to the scene at about 7:50 p.m. for a report of a shooting, but did not find a victim. At about 9:10 p.m., someone reported a body in the street, and Edwards was found suffering from multiple gunshot wounds, police said. On Saturday, at about 10 p.m., police said Jeffrey Smith , 32, was walking out of a 7-Eleven in the 4400 block of Belair Road when a masked gunman approached and shot him. He was later found in the 4200 block of Nicholas Ave., just around the corner, and taken to Johns Hopkins Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Police have identified the man fatally shot by police after officers responsded to a domestic disturbance in Medfield on Tuesday afternoon. Jonathan Blankenship, 40, was shot at least once and pronounced dead at the scene, according to police. Anthony Guglielmi, the police department's chief spokesman, said an officer responding to a domestic call in the 1400 block of N. Weldon Pl. got into a struggle with Blankenship, and officers who came to his aid fired at least once. Blankenship has a prior record including a second-degree assault conviction in Harford County for shoving his then-wife's sister, and he initially received 10 years in prison with five years suspended in District Court.